Eritrea Festival
Riots in Stockholm – police stop new demos
Stones were thrown at police officers at the “Eritrea Scandinavia” cultural festival in Stockholm. photo
© Magnus Lejhall/TT News Agency/AP/dpa
A controversial festival is overshadowed by violence in Sweden. The day after, several seriously injured people continued to be treated in the hospital. The police react.
After violent riots with more than 50 injured, the Swedish police have launched further demonstrations against an EritreanFestival in Stockholm prohibited. The permission for a public meeting, which was actually valid until Saturday, will be revoked after Thursday’s problems, the Stockholm police said on Friday. The Eritrean cultural festival, on the other hand, can continue to take place.
During a demonstration against the festival on Thursday in the north of the Swedish capital there were chaotic scenes, fires and fights. Tents and vehicles were set on fire. According to authorities, 55 people were injured, including three police officers. According to the Stockholm region, 14 people with serious injuries were still in the hospital on Friday afternoon and required further treatment.
The police began investigations into violent riots, arson and serious sabotage by the emergency services. She arrested a number of people, including one person for arson and around 140 mainly in connection with a disturbance of public order. In addition, according to the police, about 40 people could not show that they were allowed to stay in Sweden.
Conflict over political leadership in Eritrea
Behind the riots is said to be a conflict between opponents of the political leadership in the East African state of Eritrea and the organizers of the festival, who are described as pro-government. The “Festival Eritrea Scandinavia”, which has been held since the 1990s, has long been considered controversial. It has been criticized in the past for supporting the one-party dictatorship in Eritrea and inviting senior leaders. In order to demonstrate against this, according to Swedish media, native Eritreans from other European countries are said to have traveled to Sweden.
The festival runs until Sunday. It is a gathering that includes seminars and debates, music, Eritrean food and a small fair. It is not only a cultural but also a political event, said the Eritrea expert Kjetil Tronvoll the Swedish radio station SVT. The dictatorship has been conducting extensive espionage of its diaspora abroad for a long time. Eritrea is the country that exerts the strongest control over its fellow citizens living abroad in the world, he said.
An incident similar to that in Stockholm also happened in Giessen in Hesse in July. Opponents of an Eritrea festival had also had violent clashes with the police there. At least 26 police officers were injured. The organizer there is also considered to be close to the government, which is why the festival was also controversial.
Eritrea, with around three million inhabitants, is located in north-east Africa on the Red Sea and is largely isolated internationally. President Isayas Afewerki has ruled the country in a one-party dictatorship for 30 years since independence was won from Ethiopia in a decades-long war. Political parties are banned, and freedom of speech and freedom of the press are severely restricted. There is no parliament, independent courts or civil society organizations. In addition, there is a strict military service and forced labor system, from which many people flee abroad.